Reigning Formula One champion Red Bull hopes to pick up the pace over the last six rounds of the season after Max Verstappen emerged stronger than expected from back-to-back street races in Azerbaijan and Singapore, team boss Christian Horner said.

The triple world champion, who will be 27 next week, had his advantage over McLaren¡¯s Lando Norris cut from 62 points after the Italian Grand Prix at Monza on Sept. 1 to 52 as it stands after Singapore.

The season now has a four-week lull before a U.S.-Mexico-Brazil sequence starting in Austin, Texas, on Oct. 20, followed by another final triple-header of Las Vegas-Qatar-Abu Dhabi.